The New Girl
by Cerceulme
Summary: Theres a new girl at Hogwarts, and the only person who seems to know her is Malfoy. And hes scared.
1. Mysterious Stranger

Harry, Ron and Hermione raced to get onto the Hogwarts express, as it was just about to leave the platform. They stopped for a moment to catch their breaths, and then set off to find an empty compartment so that the catching up could begin. It had been a long summer, and none of them had been able to see the others; Ron had been visiting family in some strange place that had a name that was constantly changing, Hermione was holidaying with her parents, and Harry had been stuck at home, waiting for the day that school begun.  
  
All of the compartments that they passed were full of other students, already laughing and chatting. At the end of the carriage was the compartment that the trio usually used, and Ron, being in front, opened the door to go in, not even bothering to see if it was full. But halfway through the door, he stopped in his tracks, causing Harry to bump into him.  
  
Sitting by the window was a girl they had never seen before. She was sitting on the right side of the compartment, staring out the window, watching the scenery as it passed. She slowly looked over at the intruders and raised a questioning eyebrow.  
  
"All the others are full. Do you mind?" Asked Ron, indicating the other seats.  
  
The girl gave an uncaring shrug of her shoulders, to say do what you want. So the three friends sat down, but there was no talking between them, only the silence full of tension between them as they didn't want to say anything in front of this new stranger.  
  
After 10 minutes, Harry could not stand it any longer. He cleared his throat in an attempt to get the girl to look at him, but it was in vain. He tried again a second time and, rolling her eyes, the girl looked away from the window and at him and gave a fake little smile.  
  
Harry held out his hand. "Hi, my name's Harry. Harry Potter."  
  
But all the girl did was give another little fake smile, and returned to gazing out the window.  
  
The friends were shocked by this rudeness, and looked at each other, their silent glances saying so many things.  
  
Ron took another look at the girl. She was sitting straight-backed, with her arms folded in her lap. Her black dress went down to her knees, with long fitted sleeves and a high neckline. Where her black hem ended, black stockings began. And then, dainty little black lace-up ankle boots with a little heel. Her black hair was gathered at the nape of her neck in a silver hair net, the pale face emerging from it looking startlingly lifeless. Her pale skin looked like it had never seen the sun, her thin arched eyebrows, red pouty lips, wide eyes and small nose made her look like a porcelain doll. And with all the black, a porcelain doll going to a funeral.  
  
The trip to Hogwarts passed slowly, the three friends not wanting to say anything, the silence awkward while the girl was near them. They couldn't help but feel it was not right to talk around her, like it would be embarrassing for them. And so the whole time, she ignored them, staring out the window at the changing countryside, and they stole glances at her, and made meaningful glances between themselves.  
  
The only interruption to this behaviour was when Malfoy and his two sidekicks, Crabbe and Goyle, peered into the window and, upon seeing the three people who they loved to torment, grinned amusedly opened the door to the compartment.  
  
"Why lookie what we have here, Potty and his two faithful dogs. And would you look at that, they even have a new playmate. Hey Potty, who is your new girlfriend?"  
  
Harry opened his mouth to retort that he was surprise Malfoy knew what a girlfriend was, as he was sure to never have had one, when the girl changed her gaze from the window to Malfoy.  
  
Harry saw Malfoy's eyes widen in shock, and he quickly backed away from the compartment.  
  
"C'mon, they're not worth it" said Malfoy in a quavering voice. The tormenters quickly rushed off, followed by the strange girls gaze.  
  
Harry, Ron and Hermione stared with open mouths at the girl, never seeing anyone who could, with just a look, scare off Malfoy and his cronies.  
  
"How the bloody hell did you do that?" demanded Ron, wanting to know the secret powers she held over Malfoy.  
  
But the girl just looked back out the window, ignoring them again. 


	2. The Announcement

Hey everyone, thanks for your reviews and support on my first story, I wrote this in a short amount of time so its just a short chapter. All my chapters are probably gonna be short, because I just write till I can't think of anything more to write, and it's a chapter.  
  
Angel Becky Thanks heaps babe you're my first ever reviewer!!!I'm sure the story you're gonna write will be fantastic.  
  
wishful-thinking3 I love death-like things too, like stories and movies and books etc. And thanks for the compliment on my writing, I was unsure if it would bore people so it's greatly appreciated.  
  
XOX Hey babe! Yeah I decided that I might as well get myself an account as I'm always on Fanfiction, so yeah. I'll try and update heaps, but you have to make an effort too!! I know it can be hard now that I've started. Thanks for the tip, and thanks for the praise. And this chapter can be dedicated to you!!  
  
AngelDragonStar Yeah I decided to do something where Draco was the one being picked on, but it'll probably change a bit.  
  
EbonyQuill Well you wanted it, so here ya go!  
  
The Announcement  
  
As soon as the Hogwarts Express slowed to a stop, Ron, Hermione and Harry were the first to grab their things and scrabble off the train, breathing deeply the cool night air. For some reason, it was almost like that girl had sucked all of the oxygen out of that compartment, and it was necessary to catch ones breath.  
  
"Who the bloody hell was that girl?" Ron wanted to know. She was so strange, it was almost as if she weren't real, or not quite alive, almost like a bewitched doll that just sat where you put her but watched every move you made without really looking.  
  
"Wish I knew," replied Harry. "I feel so weird around her, so awkward."  
  
Hermione was struggling to catch up with the two boys larger strides. "Yeah, it's like she has the presence of an old lady, one you can't say anything around cos it might be rude." she said, slightly out of breath.  
  
The three students got into one of the Hogwarts carriages, on the way to start their 6th yeah of school.  
  
Home at last, thought Harry happily, while his friends chatted.  
  
***  
  
Draco waited behind, pretending to have lost something and was in need of finding it, urging Crabbe and Goyle ahead. In truth, he wanted to be sure that she was off the train and way ahead of him. After ten minutes, he set off to the Hogwarts Castles carriages by himself, not minding being late as long as he didn't have another encounter with her. Well, just yet, anyway. He knew he would have to sooner or later, it was inevitable. He was drawn to her, he couldn't resist her, he never had been able too. But he couldn't let anyone know, so he would just have to keep his distance for the mean- time.  
  
He finally reached the castle with a sick feeling in his stomach, hoping he wouldn't have to see her. When he reached the doors of the Great Hall, he paused for a moment, took a deep breath, and then pushed them open, ready to face to school with his carefully trained smug, uncaring look. But no one looked around to see it.  
  
He quickly sat down between Crabbe and Goyle, and was quickly lost in his own thoughts. Before he knew it, the new fist years were at their tables, and Dumbledore was standing up to announce dinner. But such an announcement did not come forth from his lips, instead it was one that Draco had been dreading.  
  
"Students, before you start to fill up your bellies, I have one more announcement. We have a new student, not going into the First year, but the sixth. Please meet Arilyn May von Ijsselstein. She has been previously sorted into Slytherin. I trust you will all make her feel welcome.  
  
"Yeah, that's if she'll let anyone" remarked Ron to Harry and Hermione, all three seated together at the Gryffindor table.  
  
"And now that you have long ago tired of an old mans ramblings, eat!" finished Dumbledore, and the tables quickly filled with food.  
  
Eyes followed Arilyn as she made her way not to sit at the Slytherin table, but over to the doors of the Great Hall, following the dreaded Potions Teacher, and Head of Slytherin House, Professor Snape.  
  
***  
  
Arilyn followed Snape into the Slytherin dungeons, where he told her breifly that she would have a seperate room from the other girls dorms, and to reach it she should go down the normal stairs to the girls dorm but instead of turning into any of the rooms, she should instead walk through a room covered by an empty portrait. There she would find her things and her new room.  
  
She simply nodded in reply, and set off in the direction she had been told to go, while he headed not back to the Great Hall, but to his own rooms, also in the dungeons, to ponder the strange and dark feeling that he had of this girl. She was definately not normal, and probably, he decided, not even actually human.  
  
Meanwhile, the students in the Great Hall continued to talk, laugh, and chatch up with eachother, with the new girl Arilyn quickly forgotten for the moment.  
  
Hey everyone, have a heart and review! Cake and cookies to all who do! And give ideas for future chappys! Luv yas heaps! 


	3. Arilyn May

Arilyn sat on the side of her new bed, in her new room, surveying her new surroundings. Being Sorted into Slytherin meant staying in their dungeons, and putting up with their fondness for green. And so much green! Green carpet, green beadspread, green wallpaper, green wall hangings, portraits of people dressed in green, there was just too much of the colour. And almost everything that was green was edged in silver. She could see herself becoming bored with the two colours very quickly. Of course, she had always preferred purples, blues and dark reds, but one could not have everything one wished for.  
  
She stood up and, ignoring her bags, walked over to a small bookshelf. On it were a few books, and even better, ones that she hadn't yet read. They would be good when the nights got long.  
  
But she could not think of books just yet, as she had somewhere to be, and someone to meet. And so she set out into the halls of Hogwarts, making her way up into the darker shadows of the passage near the Great Hall.  
  
She chose a shadow where a person dressed as she could easily go unnoticed, and prepared to wait for the children to spill out of the Hall from their dinners and be off into their warm beds. Fortunately for her, she did not have to wait long.  
  
Soon enough the doors opened, she out came the students, tired and in need of their nights rest. She watched the older children passing by, laughing and talking amongst themselves, the scared looking first years not knowing where to go just yet, and among the many unfamiliar and unimportant faces she saw the one she was looking for: Draco Malfoy.  
  
He was with his two friends, Crabbe and Goyle, laughing at a sour looking Harry Potter, who was walking ahead of Draco with his own two tag-alongs. But as soon as Draco saw Arilyn's face in the darkness, he stoped in his tracks.  
  
"Draco?" asked Crabbe, wondering why Malfoy had stopped laughing with them.  
  
"Go on ahead. I'll be in later." replied Draco hurriedly.  
  
Draco walked over into the shadow that he had last seen Arilyn's pale face looking out at him, and felt a cold hand clutch his arm almost instantly.  
  
He was led down an empty hallway and out through a small doorway into the warm July night. The sky was full of stars, but the lack of moonlight restricted his vision and kept the shadows looming ever closer.  
  
They stopped in the gardens, hidden in one of the many shadows. His arm was finally released, but as soon as thoughts started to form in his mind again, he was caught with arms around his neck, holding him close to his captor. As his eyes adjusted, Arilyn's porcelain face came into view, only this time with a real little smile.  
  
"Welcome back, my love," whispered the girl into his ear, before sucking on its lobe.  
  
"Arilyn," was all he replied, before she took his face in her hands and kissed him softly. He put his hands around her waist and held her close.  
  
"You've missed me, yet you wish never to see me again. Such a strange boy. I know you crave it just as much as I do," she said, breaking off from their kiss.  
  
"So give me what you know I so badly want." he demanded, claiming her lips in a rougher kiss than before. She pulled away from his kiss and smiled at him.  
  
"And always so eager to get what he dreads," she remarked.  
  
She bent her head back a bit, exposing her delicate neck and, raising her hand to it, created a small but deep gash with a small silver knife she had pulled from her boot. Dark red blood began to slide down her neck, and he quickly bent to lick it up. She smiled at the pleasure of his tongue dancing over her neck, and when she fel his lips on either side of the gash, sucking out her blood, she bent her head around and bit into his exposed neck. He had gotten what he wanted; now it was her turn. As soon as she felt blood on her tongue she started sucking, drawing out what she desperately craved after so long without it. Such a taste! Never could a mortal taste such a thing in another mortal's blood, although when a healthy mortal took it from one of her kind, they did taste something of that which a vampire tasted.  
  
She was drawing in a lot more than he, for she needed this life-filled substance to pass among the living as if she were one of them. But she soon stopped taking from his neck and, in doing so, stopped him from the same.  
  
"That is enough for you tonight, sweet Draco," At this, he started to back away, heading off to his dorm, but she continued, "Where do you think you are going? I said enough for you, but what about me? I'm not done with you yet." And with this she grabbed his lower arm, brought his wrist to her mouth and with a quick, painful stab of her teeth, she was drawing blood from him fast. Draco feebly tried to pull his arm away, but he knew it was no use. You could not move a vampire against its will; it would be like trying to reposition a granite statue. So all he could do was stand there stupidly, and wait for her to finish.  
  
As soon as the dizziness set in, she released him and backed away from him, clearly in ecstasy at finally being filled with life. He could see her cheeks were slightly flushed, and her skin looked more like that of a mortal. She looked alive, no more the porcelain doll but the young woman. She looked over at him, a malicious smile spreading over her face.  
  
I hate you, he thought, for using me like this.  
  
"Of course you do," she replied, having read his thoughts. "But you will come back to me, you can't help it."  
  
He walked off, trying to not stumble, the loss of blood still affecting his balance.  
  
"Sweet dreams, my Draco." She said to his retreating form.  
  
He walked back up to his dorm room, making no noises to alert anyone of his arrival. He got into bed without bothering with his clothes, drew the curtains shut, pulled the covers over his head. How could she have such a power over him? He was a Malfoy, and Malfoy's did not succumb. And when he thought about her, and that night, he did another thing Malfoy's don't do: he cried.  
  
I couldn't help it; I had to portray Draco as the victim for once. I hope all you Draco haters feel a soft spot for him now. I don't know where it came from, but it's just how the chapter is. Hope you liked it. Now please, think of me, sitting here freezing my ass off and review. Reviews warm my frostbitten little toes. Don't ask why, 'cos I don't know. They just do. ( 


	4. A run in with Snape

Hey peoples. I'm only updating a lot because it's the weekend and I have nothing better to do. I'll try and keep up during the week, but I get lots of homework. Thanks to my lovely reviewers, I know I'm not giving anyone else a chance because of the updates, but you will after the weekend!  
  
Disclaimer: (thought I'd better add one!) Everyone so far but Arilyn May belongs to J.K.Rowling. I only wish I owned them. And my description of Arilyn May resembles Anne Rice's vampires, but it is my own. I've just read to many of her books, I can't help it. Keep you're hands or Arilyn or you're bashed.  
  
wishful-thinking3 I know it probably was described a lot like Anne Rice, but that just because I've read a lot of her work, it's rubbed off on me. And I'll try and make the chapters longer.  
  
AngelDragonStar lol I'm glad it's creepy. Thanks.  
  
***  
  
During the next few weeks, Arilyn attended classes along with all the other students, but the night was hers to do with as she wished. Every night, when most everyone was asleep, she would set off to explore her new home. She wandered the halls of Hogwarts, taking into detail everything that she saw. Paintings, wall hangings, secret passages, classrooms, everything was so new to her. She crept about, not making a sound except for the faintest click of her heeled boots. Every time she saw a professor, she simply took another passage or took to the shadows, standing still as if she were simply one of the many statues. She would always have to close her eyes as the passed though, as her eyes took in the small particles of light like a cats', shining through the darkness looking like flat green orbs.  
  
But one night, during the fourth week, when she passed through one of the hallways she came across a door she had never seen before. The door was slightly ajar with light flickering through, as if the room contained a fire. She paused before opening the door, revealing a medium sized room.  
  
It was moderately furnished, with rugs on the stone floors, a few hanging tapestries depicting nothing of importance, but the thing that caught her eye was a large mirror with an ornate gold frame. Underneath it was a small table, and on the table was a simple black candelabra.  
  
She caught a glimpse of her reflection, and was drawn to it. She stared captivated at the way the candle lights created flickering shadows over her face, at one moment catching the paleness of her skin and at another making it look alive. She smiled at herself, and the light caught a flash of small fangs. The lighting made her smile look sinister, and the shadows fell just rightly on her face to make her look truly evil. Any mortal given such a look would surely flee in terror.  
  
"Having fun there?" drawled a voice of someone familiar.  
  
She whirled to face him, startled that she had been so careless as to let someone approach her without her knowing of it. It was Professor Snape, she hadn't even heard him come into the room, and yet he was standing a few feet directly behind her.  
  
"Students are supposed to be in bed, not gazing at themselves in various mirrors, Miss Ijsselstein. I had no idea that you were an exception."  
  
Her eyes narrowed at him, but he did not notice as he was instead looking at the mirror behind her. The reflection of her back was clear, a surprise to him after what he had decided of her.  
  
"Get back to your dorm, before I feel I have to take points off my own house."  
  
So she walked slowly over to the door, acting as if she had all the time in the world and, with one more evil glance aimed over her shoulder at Snape, she tuned and became one with the shadows.  
  
Snape looked into the mirror that she had been staring into, with a feeling of unease. He reached out and touched the cool glass, thinking of what he had seen before. The girl's reflection had been clearly visible, and yet although he had been standing behind her, in clear view of the mirror, his reflection had not been anywhere to be seen. And it still wasn't.  
  
***  
  
Severus Snape went from that room straight into the Library. He scanned down the shelves, pulling out any books on magical or bewitched mirrors. When he had nicely sized stack of them, he sat down at one of the tables, and began searching through the books. It was hard to find what he was looking for, as he wasn't entirely sure of it himself. But when finally, halfway through the seventh book, he came across a picture of a mirror that had a striking resemblance to the one in the room, he stopped to read.  
  
There was a picture of a large mirror with an ornate gold frame, and on closer inspection, he realised that it didn't just resemble the mirror he had earlier seen, but it was exactly like it. Underneath the picture he read:  
  
Ashatay  
  
or  
  
The Mirror of the Dead  
  
Such mirrors are rarely seen, as they are very rare and hard to make.  
Ashatay mirrors were created first in ancient times by the Egyptian priests. They were to show only beings that were both alive, and yet also  
dead. They were usually placed inside the tombs of kinds, so that the kings would be able to see themselves once they had reached the afterlife, for it was believed that once a person had been dead and had reached new life, normal  
mirrors would not hold their reflection. And so with these old curses, more mirrors have been made over time, with  
different designs but the same purpose. Any reflective surface can be  
bewitched for this purpose.  
Such mirrors will not reflect anything that is truly alive, only things  
that are dead, or undead, such as zombies, vampires and ghosts.  
  
His suspicions confirmed, he realised he would have to tell someone about what he had found. He stood quickly, and, leaving the books for the elves to replace, set off towards Dumbledores office. He didn't know how the Headmaster had not detected this girl, but he, Severus Snape, would not stand for such a creature to be at this school.  
  
He set off quickly, taking all the shortcuts he knew so that he would arrive at the Headmasters office soon as possible.  
  
When he was halfway there, travelling down a long hallway, he saw something out of the corner of his eye dart around the corner of one of the side halls. He turned to look, his head telling him he should follow and investigate. Who knows, it might just be one of the Gryffindors pulling some stupid prank, and he would be able to take points. However, when he rounded the corner, the passage was empty.  
  
He stopped, puzzled, wondering where the offender might have gotten to. Then he heard the click of a door.  
  
Hurrying towards the door, he opened it and walked through into the dark night. Looking around, he was again puzzled when he could not see the person he had been following.  
  
Maybe it was just one of the ghosts, he thought to himself, when a moving shadow darted into the darkness of the nearby Forbidden Forrest. Smiling to himself, he knew he would be able to take large amounts of points and issue long detentions for the student who was in the forest at nighttime. He walked quickly, determined that he would catch the assailant, his quest to Dumbledor completely forgotten as his head told him follow.  
  
He strode into the forest, quickly covering ground and not realising how far he was going. It was only after walking quickly for ten minutes that he realised no student would be stupid enough to come this far into the forest.  
  
A shape darted in and out of the shadows on the edge of his vision. He pulled out his wand and turned to follow it, when another shape darted in and out to his right. He turned again, and was accosted by yet another darting figure. A child's laughter was heard, and then another darting shadow. Soon he was turning all about, confused by movement and sound.  
  
Suddenly he was taken from behind, his wand wrenched from his hand, and he was thrown to the ground. A small dark figure straddled his chest, pinning his arms with its legs.  
  
"Get the fuck off me!" yelled Snape, as he struggled against the person on top of him.  
  
The person lowered it's face close to his and through the darkness, Snape could see the paleness of the skin, the delicate features and the eyes that were slightly reflective in the limited light.  
  
"And why would I do that?" asked Arilyn, a small smile playing across her face.  
  
Snape caught a glimpse of fangs and struggled harder, but it was impossible to move from under her.  
  
"Help!" cried Snape, wishing for anyone, or anything, to come to his aide.  
  
"Shhh," Arilyn hushed him and put a finger over his mouth. "Now now, I wouldn't want to have to hurt you, would I?" she asked mockingly.  
  
"You wont get away with this," warned Snape.  
  
"Get away with what?" she asked innocently, running a sharp nail down the side of his face and licking up the blood.  
  
He scowled at her, and she made a fakely upset face.  
  
"Now, when you go to tell everybody what you know about me, remember this: I live for a long time. I'll hunt you down. I'll hunt your friends and family down. And when I've done away with them, I'll get their children. So be careful. I havn;t hurt anyone at this school. Yet. Don't provoke me."  
  
And with this, she got up and walked away, disappearing into the shadows. Snape lay where he was for a while, too shocked to move. How had she known? But when he sensed eyes watching him, and felt the creatures of the night starting to creep up again, he got up and walked back to the castle, knowing that so many lives now rested on his decision.  
  
When he reached halls of the castle, he turned to head up to Dumbledore's office, but after just a few steps, turned back and headed down to where his rooms lay, deep in the comforting familiarity of his dungeons.  
  
You all know how much I love reviews so please, have a heart and type down your thoughts to me.  
  
Queen Kleopatra xoxoxoxoxoxoxox 


	5. The Classroom

By the time Arilyn got back to her room, the other students of the castle were only just waking up. She slipped into her room, unnoticed by all but one person: Draco.  
  
He has spent the night awake in the common room, not being able to sleep because images of a girl he loved and yet despised played upon his mind every time he would get close to sleep. And if he did sleep, he would dream only of her. He had been like this for three days, ever since their last 'meeting', and the tiredness was taking it's toll on his body.  
  
He felt sick, in his body and in his mind. She was like a plague, she infected every sing pore on his body, even when she wasn't near, he couldn't get away from her.  
  
The other students loved her, of course. She was mysterious, she was new, and she was beautiful. Not the beautiful that so many growing girls would strive with potions and charms to achieve, but a beauty of her own, one that was so alluring yet no one knew why. She was slim, but she didn't have big breasts. She wasn't tall with mile long legs; she was petite, but not too petite as to look strange. She looked many years under her age, and yet at the same time, many years over. And yet she was easily considered the most beautiful creature by girl and boy, man and woman. She was like a doll, everyone felt like they had to protect her.  
  
And the teachers, bar Snape, loved her. She knew everything in class; she never had to ask questions like the annoying Granger, she didn't need any help like the imbecile Longbottem, and she completed her work to an exceptionally high level. She was easily the most intelligent child in all of her classes.  
  
The only off-putting thing about her was that she didn't have any friends, not because no one would approach her, but because everyone who did was turned away with an uncaring, I'm-too-good-for-you response. And she rarely spoke. But when she did, her voice was soft, and yet perfectly clear, and you heard every word she wanted you to hear.  
  
By the time the student were finally ready to face the day, they headed out of their dorm rooms and down to the Great Hall for breakfast. Pulled out of his thoughts, Draco headed down the stairs that lead to the separate dorm hallways, passing Arilyn on the way. He stopped in his tracks and began to look for a place of escape, but she merely passed him by without a glance. Confused at why she was rejecting him, and yet relieved at the same time, he headed back to his room.  
  
When he got there, he lay down on his bed, and, his body finally giving in fell into the darkness filled only with Arilyn and the frightening images of her past, made known to him by a means unknown.  
  
***  
  
When the first class for the day started, the sixth year Gryffindors and Slytherins filed into the Potions dungeon, and took their seats. After five minutes in whick the talked while preparing for their lesson, Snape barged in, his dark robes flowing dramatically around him.  
  
"Put your books away, today we are making the Revealing Elixir. Anyone care to tell me what it does? After all, you were supposed to read about it."  
  
Hermiones hand instantly shot up into the air.  
  
"As usual, Miss Granger is the only one here who can reply. I'm disappointed."  
  
At this moment, Arilyn walked into the classroom, surveying the people already present, and sitting towards the back of the classroom. She lounged back in her chair, and simply shrugged her shoulders at Snapes piercing glare, giving the look of someone who has no clue of what they've done wrong.  
  
"As I was saying until we were so rudely interrupted, the Revealing Elixir reveals the species of anything on which it is applied. You put a few drops on the skin or fur of the creature, and the Elixir turns a certain colour depending on the species of that creature. The potion is on page 174 of your books, read it thoroughly and begin brewing." He finished by sitting down and ruffling papers about, and began to take the role.  
  
The students quickly gathered their things, they wanted to make sure they got the best ones they could before everything was taken. They then started reading, and preparing as they went along, not wanting to end up having to finishing after class.  
  
Harry and Ron, paying more attention to their conversation that their potion, noticed Malfoy wasn't in class making their time hell.  
  
"I guess that git's gonna leave us along for the day then?" remarked Ron, casually cutting up his ingredients.  
  
"Finally. He's getting annoying; it's about time that he buggered off." Replied Harry.  
  
"Probably off somewhere trying to grow a dick," Harry, seeing Hermione way ahead of them, quickly went on to the next step of the potion.  
  
"Yeah, trying," said Ron with a snigger.  
  
"You know if you two shut the hell up for once, you might actually get some work done in class," observed Hermione, while starting to boil the first ingredients.  
  
"If. BIG emphasis on the if," retorted Ron, but Harry and Ron stopped their chatting for a moment to work on a crucial part of the preparation.  
  
Arilyn worked quickly, almost finished although most of the class had only just started boiling. She didn't have to read about this, she had already done so. She'd read everything else in the book too.  
  
Snape walked by, finished with his various papers. He could find nothing wrong with what she was doing, but wished he could, as then he'd have something to scold her about. He felt the need to get back at her, show her that she couldn't control him. But of course she could, and he knew that he wouldn't tell anyone until he and everyone else she had threatened were safe. So he kept his temper, for the moment. Instead he vented himself on Longbottem, telling him off loudly for the slightest imperfection that really wouldn't make any difference. The potion was easy, he didn't feel like having to send student to the hospital wing for injuries they would surely incur. He just couldn't be bothered, strangely enough.  
  
Suddenly a huge bang issued throughout the classroom. Great, thought Snape, as he felt something liquid slide down his back, Longbottem's done it again.  
  
But when he turned around, searching for Neville to yell at him, he found the boy's cauldron intact. But everyone was splattered with variously coloured splodges of wetness, so he searched for the source.  
  
It turned out to be the least expected student that was the culprit, Arilyn was trying to hide a grin on her face as she looked at Snape.  
  
"Opps!" she said, trying not to laugh. A few giggles issued throughout the class, everyone was looking at Snape. He looked around, and then back at her.  
  
"Detention tonight, Miss Ijsselstein, and for the rest of the week! And clean this mess up RIGHT NOW" he yelled, infuriated. She had caused this on purpose just to provoke him, he knew it.  
  
Soon the giggles turned into outright laughter.  
  
"SILENCE!" he yelled, but to no avail. The class just laughed harder. And every one of them was watching him. He was furious, not having been amusement for an audience against his will for so many years.  
  
He threw his head in annoyance; his long hair was getting in his face. But something about his hair caught his eyes. It wasn't black anymore. He grabbed a handful of it and looked at it. It wasn't any particular colour because it kept changing. Fluro pink to baby blue to deep purple to aquamarine. And it kept going, colour to colour, on and on.  
  
His eyes wide with horror, he quickly stormed out of the room as the bell rang. The laughter became unrestrained as soon as the door closed behind him; he could hear it all the way down the hall as he rushed to his rooms. 


End file.
